


Essays on The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson

by astronbookfilms (galaxyture)



Category: Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson (TV Russia)
Genre: Gen, Meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2019-02-02 01:00:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12716529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galaxyture/pseuds/astronbookfilms
Summary: These essays focus on the Russian TV show "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson" starring Vasiliy Livanov as Sherlock Holmes and Vitali Solomin as Dr. Watson.





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: This page; Chapter 2: Russian Holmes Overview; Chapter 3: The Bloody Inscription; Chapter 4: The King of Blackmailers (The Master Blackmailer on Amazon)


	2. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson Overview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This essay gives a brief overview and review of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson that was produced for Russian TV.

I do not speak a word of Russian so I am relying on the official subtitles. Some of the word choices seemed odd or sentences were oddly structured so my reliance on subtitles will probably affected my ability to fairly judge the scripts. For example, I am not sure if in Russian he is a private detective (as the subtitles say) or, as he is in canon, a consulting detective. Moriarty is spelled “Moriarti”. In the Hounds of Baskerville all or at least a distracting number of the “W”s are capitalized whether they should be or not.

On Amazon video the series is titled “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson” and true to the title Dr. John Watson is very much Sherlock’s Holmes’ partner. He may lack Holmes’ deduction ability, but he is in the vast majority of Holmes’ scenes and contributes much to the partnership beyond giving Holmes’ a chance to verbalize his reasoning.

The irony is that needing to rely on subtitles made me more aware of the physical acting particularly when I needed to figure out what an odd subtitled word was meant to convey. 

I immediately loved Vitali Solomin’s Dr. John Watson. He expertly balances his roles as doctor, former soldier, biographer, and assistant to Sherlock Holmes. His attitude towards Holmes is warmer than in many adaptations. Even his exasperation at Holmes’ clueless about things any school child or functional adult should know is softened with clear affection.

It took me longer to warm up to Vasiliy Livanov’s Holmes, but after a couple of episodes I started to really appreciate what he brought to the character. His Holmes is very much a real person rather than a superman. His deductions are explained. Considering how many adaptations turn Holmes’ deductive abilities into a magic trick and him into either a robot or superman, I really appreciate the more human take on Holmes. He is the detective equivalent of Stephen Hawking or Wayne Gretzky (hockey). There is nothing seemingly supernatural nor is anything wrong about him. He is simply extraordinary in one field through both natural ability and hard work.

Just as Watson is gentle in his annoyance at Holmes, Holmes is gentle in correcting Watson in contrast to canon and most other adaptations. Russian Holmes’ corrections reassure Watson of Watson’s cleverness and are spoken in a tone of a teacher who fully respects Watson and does not view Watson’s inability to follow Holmes’ deductions as a reflection on Watson’s general intelligence.

Lestrade (Borislav Brondukov) is an unpleasant vaguely antagonistic incompetent adversary. I found this two dimensional characterization annoying.

Mrs. Hudson, (Rina Zelyonaya), is given very little to do and it is hard to form a strong opinion of her character.

If Granada Holmes shows characterization through the cases, Russian Holmes does it to an even greater extent. After their introduction in the set-up for their first case, an adaptation of the Speckled Band, there are virtually no “character scenes”.

I am less fond of the characterizations of the women than I am on Granada Holmes. This was particularly noticeable in the adaptation of "The Second Stain" which presents a far weaker and less interesting version of Lady Hilda. I have not seen "The Treasure of Agra" yet so I can't comment on Mary Morstan in that episode. In the episodes after her marriage to Dr. Watson she is either shown for a few seconds or only briefly mentioned. Since Russian Holmes' run overlapped Granada Holmes' run I am chalking up the difference in how women are portrayed as differences between British and Soviet/Russian media rather than time period.

The show also suffered a decline in quality in the the film two episodes "The Twentieth Century Approaches" and "The Twentieth Century Begins". "The Engineer's Thumb" was probably a poor choice to try to adapt as Holmes and Watson are barely in it, but "The Second Stain" is one of the best Sherlock Holmes stories.

On a metatextual level the “British government” or members of it excessively flawed plays a little differently when it is a Soviet/Russian production. What is self-mockery in most adaptations takes an added less friendly dimension when it is a Soviet/Russian production filmed during the Cold War. 

As it should be virtually all the cases end with Holmes and Watson in front of the fire in 221B Baker St. discussing the case they have just solved.


	3. The Bloody Inscription Review and Analysis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This essay discusses the episode "The Bloody Inscription" which includes the adaptations of "The Speckled Band" and "A Study in Scarlet".

One of the most striking things about “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson” is how gentle, affectionate, and physically comfortable Holmes and Watson are from the beginning. Adaptations inevitably reflect the culture and views of those making the film/TV show. My knowledge of Russia and The Soviet Union is mainly political and the Russian characters I have seen in the past have been in western, mainly British and American, productions. Thus, I don’t know how much of that closeness and affection is specific to the characters and how much is what a Russian audience would expect to see from two men who are close friends.

As stated in my overview post, both actors are excellent. The partnership between Holmes and Watson is balanced from the point where Holmes explains what Watson missed in his deduction of Holmes. Showing Watson as already having some skill at deduction before Holmes really sets up the equality of the partnership.

Watson likes Holmes from the beginning and you can see how hard he fights against his growing suspicion that Holmes is a criminal mastermind.

In many adaptations it is “The Empty House” adaptation that takes the time for character scenes, but it is nice to have it done before they even begin solving a case (unless you consider Watson’s first case to be solving the mystery of Holmes’ profession). 

I always appreciate adaptions showing Holmes as a boxer. I loved that as soon as Mrs. Hudson is assured that Holmes is only using one arm in deference to Watson’s injury she decides to just bring them some Sherry.

I also appreciated Holmes’ flare with his disguises.

Holmes frequently laughs in canon, but many adaptations leave that element of his personality out. Russian Holmes embraces it.

Most of the gentleness and companionship is showing through acting and directing choices. Much of the dialogue comes directly from the stories, but take on a different feel when the actors are playing them as less harsh.

Holmes also shows better ‘people comforting’ skills from the beginning than he does in some adaptations. I have never been able to understand how Holmes could be such a brilliant detective if he didn’t know how to make a witness or client feel safe around him.

The case of “The Speckled Band” is solved relatively quickly, but it still shows the parts we need to see to understand the case. Roylott is one of the more horrible villains in the canon and is played with every ounce of malice.

“The Bloody Inscription” does a pretty good job of adapting “A Study in Scarlet”. My distaste for the portrayal of Lestrade unfortunately hinders my enjoyment of episode as he plays a rather large role. Holmes points out at the end that sometimes one has more sympathy for the criminal than the victim, but I didn’t have sympathy for either. Honestly, I was more upset about Toby’s (the dog) death.

You can really see Holmes’ comparative gentleness come into play in his deduction of Watson’s watch.

Watson’s utter indignation at the paper ignoring Holmes’ contributions was well-played. I noticed that Solomin seemed to especially relish “Russia” when listing the countries that Holmes’ stories would be published. That was a nice in-joke.


	4. The King of Blackmailers Review and Analysis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a review and analysis of "The King of Blackmailers" episode. Amazon video lists it as "The Master Blackmailer".

In some ways “The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton” is one of the darkest stories in canon. Adding to the horror of the story, Milverton is inspirited by a real life blackmailer, Charles Augustus Howell. Many of the stories have become dated over the years, but a master blackmailer is a threat that remains to this day.

Amazon thinks the title is “The Master Blackmailer”. The actual title is “The King of Blackmailers”. Adaptations inevitably change some things from the original. There are practical reasons for leaving out the woman who kills Milverton grinding her heel into his face. Most of the other changes made were to set it up as a prequel leading into the adaptations of “The Final Problem” and “The Empty House” (“The Mortal Coil” on Amazon).

Holmes informing Mrs. Hudson that he and Watson owe her for the repairman and insisting that the repairman earned 2.5 shillings based on the time the candle shows he was there rather than the 1.5 shillings that Mrs. Hudson quoted is a great touch. Holmes not only values justice when it comes to solving crimes, but also in the rest of his life.

There is a wonderful irony that Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson who solve crimes turn out to be terrible burglars. Holmes cuts his finger and underestimates the dog. Neither considered a parrot. Watson leaves footprints and loses his shoe in the escape. Holmes has to race out of their hiding place to get his jacket and still ends up leaving a letter sticking out. For such a dark episode I appreciate the comedy.

Holmes and Watson are very much partners. There is a wonderful comfort and trust between them. It is a standard storytelling practice to have characters at their most comfortable together just before a cliff-hanger that will place the bonds between them under great strain and Holmes’ “fall” certainly counts as great strain. Holmes and Watson versus Lestrade is a combination I have always enjoyed and we see a bit of it at the end.

Watson’s reaction to Holmes joking about his disguise results in Watson stomping away and slamming the door. Holmes’ announcement of his engagement to gain access to information about the house causes even more annoyance from Watson. This one of Russian Holmes’ Watson most dramatic moments. (I love that Doyle had Watson threaten to go to the police if Holmes wouldn’t share the adventure with him. I realize that the threat doesn’t work as well with the Holmes and Watson we see in Russian Holmes, but I did miss that line.)

Boris Ryzhukhin is possibly the creepiest Charles Milverton on-screen. His restraint in voice and body language as he commits and talks about committing horrible deeds is chilling. Sometimes it is the monster that seems normal that is the most dangerous and frightening monster of all. The physical similarities between the drawings by Sidney Paget and Ryzhukhin are uncanny.

Although the story takes place in Victorian England, Milverton’s confident sexism is the type that is still seen today including in countries that claim not to be sexist. The roles for women, especially when it comes to anything sexual, and the price women are expected to pay for transgressing them in contrast to the much laxer rules for men have not disappeared.

I have always appreciated that it was a woman who had been wronged by Milverton that shot him. Traditionally it would be a husband, father, brother, son, or other man avenging a wronged woman. One of the things I appreciate about Doyle is that he shows women of all shades of morality just as he shows men of all shades of morality. Instead of dehumanizing women by putting them on a pedestal he writes women in a variety of circumstances who have agency to deal with those circumstances in a variety of ways. Ultimately despite my absolute revulsion for blackmailers and those who take pleasure in ruining other people’s lives I cannot condone murder.

This is also one of the best episodes for Mrs. Hudson although nothing can compare to her in “The Empty House”. Her insisting that the dust was Holmes’ responsibility was a nice touch and a reminder than Mrs. Hudson has never been “just their housekeeper”. I loved her telling off Holmes and Watson for the way their mail gets delivered. Her comment that Holmes is hopeless, but she expected better from Watson is perfect. 

The competitive relationship between the Holmes brothers is well-done. Vasiliy Livanov and Boris Klyuev play off each other very well. However, I found the ‘deducing contest’ about the Marker to be over-the-top. Russian Holmes is generally good about keeping Holmes within the realms of humanity, but the deduction sequence made the Holmes brothers almost a cartoon. I far prefer Watson’s take on the deductions that Holmes’ skill is based on practice. Watson’s conclusion fits what we see throughout the show.

Adapting a short story to an hour of film requires some expansions, but the expansions worked. Since we are seeing things as they happen rather than relying solely on Watson’s narrations it is easier to extend scenes. Both Livanov and Solomin are masters of non-verbal acting (which isn’t to say that they aren’t also good at voice acting).

In Doyle’s story the footprints are left, but the police do not get Watson’s shoe. In the adaptation Watson wipes up the footprints, but the police get his shoe. In the written story Lestrade dismisses the idea that it could be Watson, but in Russian Holmes he laughs then seems to retain some suspicion. Granted Watson was stressed, but he could have made things easier for himself if he had moved the shoe to the back of the fire at the beginning instead of doing it while Lestrade was next to him.

I loved Holmes having one of the dog treats himself.

Doyle had a thing for female characters whose names start with E.


	5. The Deadly Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This essay is a review of the adaptation of "The Final Problem".

The Granada Holmes adaptation of “The Final Problem” has Watson’s sad narration letting the viewer know from the beginning that this is a sad story. However, there are moments of peace in their travels. “The Deadly Fight” lacks the Watson narration, but manages to be even sadder.

Adding the reference to Sebastian Moran in this episode was a good idea.

Holmes’ disguise on the train is restrained by his usual standards. Nevertheless it does allow him to startle Watson and for them to escape Moriarty.

It surprises me a bit that Holmes would think that Watson would return to England because Holmes is a dangerous companion. When has danger ever stopped Watson from following Holmes?

As always Livanov and Solomin do a brilliant job. Their personal talent as actors and the chemistry between them is wonderful to watch.

There is physically monstrous quality to Russian Holmes’ Moriarty. His frequent hunched over look calls to mind many villains in classic horror literature and films. I appreciated the fact that this Moriarty was also skilled at Baritsu, but I was disappointed that he is shown more as a physical threat than as an intellectual foe.

Much of the appeal of Moriarty as a villain is that he is a match for Holmes. While Holmes is a good fighter what makes him unique is his intellect and deduction ability. We are only briefly told about Mortiarty’s organization and frankly having Wolfman and Moran in his service doesn’t cut it. Considering Watson originally thinks that Holmes is a criminal mastermind it is unfortunate that more wasn’t done with the actual criminal mastermind in the stories.

I realize that part of this is that in the canon Doyle was so eager to kill off Holmes that he rushed the story, but even he gave more of a sense that Moriarty was in fact the Napoleon of crime. A modern audience knows that Holmes isn’t really dead which necessitates developing Moriarty more or he is just another criminal. Russian Holmes stuck close to canon, but they also were willing to enhance the stories. I wish they had done a better job of showing that Moriarty really was the Napoleon of crime.

Watson’s tears falling on Holmes’ letter was a wonderful touch.

On first viewing I found Peter Steiler’s grief overacted, but on a second viewing I realized that he is a stand-in for everyone Holmes has helped. Watson and Mrs. Hudson would not have been the only people mourning his death. In some ways he can also be seen as a stand-in for the audience and the original readership who mourned Holmes’ death to the point that Doyle resurrected him.

The line “Keeping a loaded firearm in your jacket pocket” is far less unnerving than the canon, “It is a dangerous habit to finger loaded firearms in the pocket of one’s dressing gown.” Granted with the subtitles I am never 100% sure I am getting the right dialogue especially since they use “Moriarti”. (Also, it is American English subtitles which is probably even more distracting than their normal weird word choices. *headdesk*)

The fight sequence is much closer to the Sidney Paget illustrations than the Granada Holmes fight. It also lasts longer. That part really did feel like I was watching Doyle’s written story come to life.

I realize this review is not as glowing as most of my reviews. I thought about skipping it, but thought it was too weird to post one for “The King of Blackmailers” and “The Tiger Hunt” without including this one. The one for the adaptation of “The Empty House” is more positive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you are watching this series on Amazon video it is bundled with the adaptation of "The Empty House" and is titled "The Mortal Coil".


	6. The Hunt for the Tiger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a review of the episode "The Hunt for the Tiger", the adaptation of "The Empty House". It is called "The Mortal Coil" on Amazon video.

Amazon thinks the title is “The Mortal Coil”. Whatever it is called where you live I highly recommend it.

Much is made about Watson subbing in as a solo detective in “The Hound of Baskerville”, but the same is at least as true in “The Hunt for the Tiger”. Watson’s inability to adequately protect Adair adds another dimension to the story. It can be used as an argument to weaken Watson, but it can also be seen as a choice to add more personal involvement into the first half of the episode.

I loved the bonding moments between Mrs Hudson and Watson. 

I have a distaste for the “accuse the detective” trope due to the Encyclopedia Brown books abusing it, but having Watson accused of the murder was an interesting choice. It does, however, play into the ‘Lestrade is a complete idiot’ element of Russian Holmes.

This Watson doesn’t have many chances to be snarky, but I love his sarcastic comment about shooting Adair while hovering in the air.

In contrast to canon both Holmes and Moriarty are both experts in Baritsu. Of all the Moriartys I have seen Russian Holmes’ is probably the most monstrous and physically the scariest.

The show takes the time to clearly show Watson’s and Mrs. Hudson’s pain at Holmes’ death. Watson trying to play Holmes’ violin was a wonderful touch.

The reunion scene is one of the most touching scene I have ever seen in a Sherlock Holmes adaptation- not just for the reunion, but for any scene. Vasiliy Livanov excels at “say it with a look” as his expression changes from a soft happiness at seeing Watson to concern and regret for his dramatics when Watson faints. There isn’t as much affectionate interaction between Holmes and Mrs. Hudson as in some adaptations, but Holmes’ concern for her and gentleness really shines through. I am not sure how I feel about the audience seeing Holmes remove his disguise, but even if you know that the bookseller is Holmes it still gives the scene a much different feel to have the audience see Holmes removing the disguise versus Holmes doing so off-camera. Both the fact that Watson wore a mourning ribbon and his smile as he took it off while talking to Holmes was a beautiful touch.

Watson’s soldier’s background is often on display, but in contrast to the western popular culture view of soldiers he is also willing to show his emotions. In the privacy of 221B he allows his continuing grief at Holmes’ death to overtake him and guilt in that he betrayed Holmes by not being able able to fulfill Holmes’ last request. When Mrs. Hudson sees him crying he makes no effort to hide it from her.

Watson has seem a lot of strange things since he started joining Holmes on his adventures, but you can see him doubting his own eyes at Holmes’ appearance. His first words to Holmes are about the police wanting to arrest him as a plea for Holmes to help him. Solomin’s Watson is one of the more competent Watsons, but at that vulnerable moment he is on a literary level a ‘gentleman in distress’.

His need to leaning close to Holmes and touch him to prove to himself that Holmes is really shows how much Watson suffered in Holmes’ absence. Watching him crying on Holmes’ shoulder is absolutely heartbreaking.

Holmes starting to cry at Watson’s Mrs. Hudson’s reaction doesn’t work in abstract, but works well as played. One of my favorite things about Russian Holmes is that both Holmes and Watson can be masculine, but neither exhibit the hyper-macho idiocy that some men adopt.

In contrast to canon Holmes doesn’t tell Watson how he survived until the end of the episode. I can see the appeal of having the explanation in front of the fire at 221B Baker Street and wonder if the more emotional reaction on the part of Watson, Holmes, and Mrs Hudson led to this change.

We see the verbal confirmation of Watson’s feelings of guilt in his last conversation with Holmes and we see Holmes insisting that they are both at fault. Holmes defends guilt and argues that every good man has it when an evil man succeeds. I find that interesting because so often in western society guilt is associated with religion particularly Christianity. Sherlock Holmes was not remotely religious and the Soviet Union was officially atheist.

The fight with Moran is short. I loved the way Solomin as Watson delivered his offer to help and finish off Moran.

Livanov and Solomin have wonderful comic timing. This series is definitely worth watching for anyone who appreciates canon Holmes and good acting.


End file.
